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Law360 (April 21, 2020, 5:36 PM EDT ) Congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle have asked China to lift trade restrictions on medical and safety supplies to aid U.S. manufacturers during the coronavirus pandemic while urging the Trump administration to do the same.
In a Monday letter addressed to Chinese Ambassador Cui Tiankai, a group of 15 bipartisan House leaders asked the Chinese government to lift or expedite its export certification requirement for medical supplies needed to combat COVID-19, such as testing kits and ventilators.
The Chinese government issued a March 31 notice that coronavirus medical supply exports must meet the quality standards set by China's National Medical Products Association and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, according to the letter signed by representatives including Jimmy Panetta, D-Calif., and Darin LaHood, R-Ill.
The lawmakers said that even though they support China's effort to maintain quality control of medical supplies, the rule has forced American medical supply manufacturers to stop shipments from China to the U.S.
"We respectfully ask that the Chinese government work with the U.S. State Department and other U.S. agencies to quickly develop a more targeted approach to its new export requirements that does not needlessly prevent quality medical products from quickly reaching the United States," the House leaders said.
Last week Congressional leaders also urged the Trump administration to lift tariffs on imports needed by American producers of medical supplies and personal protective gear.
In a letter sent to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, Sens. Thomas Carper, D-Del., and Pat Toomey, R-Pa., asked the Trump administration to make a list of products that are needed to manufacture "critical" medical supplies and exempt those items from tariffs.
"We urge you to do everything in your power — both in terms of domestic trade policy and cooperation with other countries — to ensure that American healthcare workers on the front lines of fighting COVID-19, along with their patients, have the medical supplies they need as soon as possible," they wrote.
In the U.S., the Trump administration's effort to lift trade restrictions during the coronavirus outbreak has been limited.
On Sunday, President Donald Trump issued an executive order giving importers hurt by the pandemic a 90-day extension on the payment of so-called most-favored nation tariffs, while keeping in place payment deadlines for anti-dumping and countervailing duties and national security tariffs on aluminum and steel.
And earlier this month, the Trump administration hit medical supplies with new trade restrictions, barring N95 masks, gloves and other items from being exported without explicit approval from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for at least four months.
Carper and Toomey, along with 10 other senators, also sent a letter to Chinese Ambassador Tiankai asking the Chinese government to lift its certification requirement on medical supply exports.
The Senate leaders said the requirement is stopping much-needed medical supplies from coming to the U.S. and hurting the country's fight against COVID-19.
A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
--Editing by Haylee Pearl.
For a reprint of this article, please contact reprints@law360.com.
